Wall molding for supporting ceiling tiles



Dec. 13, 1960 V. JACOBSON WALL MOLDING FOR SUPPORTING CEILING TILES Filed March 29, 1956 INVENTOR Victor Jacobson BY United States Patent WALL MOLDING FOR SUPPORTING CEILING TILES Victor Jacobson, Poundridge, N.Y., assignor to Level- Line Ceilings Inc., New York, N.Y., a corporation of New York Filed Mar. 29, 1956, Ser. No. 574,688

'1 Claim. (Cl. 18988) This invention relates to wall moldings for supporting ceiling tiles, and has for its object the provision of an improved sheet metal molding which has the shape of an L-bar, one side (herein called the upright side) is attached to the wall and the other side (herein called the horizontal side) extends into the room and supports the ceiling tiles.

Sheet metal wall moldings having the general shape of an L-bar are widely used to support ceiling tiles, such as acoustic tiles, along the side walls of the room. The upright side of the molding is nailed against the wall, usually several inches below the floor above, and the horizontal side of the molding projects into the room and forms the edge portion of the ceiling. The tiles over the major area of the ceiling are supported by various types of hanger bars, or the like, and edges of the tiles adjacent the walls are supported on the horizontal side of the molding. In order to install the tiles along the walls it is necessary to have some clearance, say, about A to /2 inch between the edges of the tiles and the inside of the molding. Since the tiles merely rest on their supporting horizontal sides they can shift their positions due to building vibration and expose cracks between the next adja cent tile leaving a dark unsightly shadow. To prevent this shifting of the tiles it has been the common practice to insert thin curved springs between the moldings and the edges of the tiles supported on the molding to push these tiles into close contact with the adjacent tiles thereby to prevent the Wide cracks resulting from the spacing of the tiles.

The springs presently used are not entirely satisfactory for several reasons. The workmen frequently fail to insert them; they become displaced, and they are apt to spring out of place and injure the workman or become lost.

My invention overcomes the aforementioned difficulties in using such springs by providing springs integral with the upright side of the molding which bear against thp edges of the tiles which are supported on the molding and permanently hold them in contact with the next adjacent tiles. In a preferred embodiment of my invention, I cut and press out of the upright side of the molding a series of spaced-apart tabs which are curved to provide a bearing surface for the tiles and sufficient resiliency to hold the tiles in position. One of the important features of the invention is that the tabs are attached to the side at the top and the lower free end can be pushed inward and spring back outward. It is proportioned to exert a force in the horizontal direction of the tile and does not lift the tile oif the support. I prefer to provide a series of teeth on the tabs which point downwardly to prevent the tiles from moving upward under ordinary service conditions.

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The invention will be better understood after considering the following discussion taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, in which Fig. l is a perspective of a wall molding of the invention in its attached position;

Fig. 2 is a sectional view at 2-2 of Fig. 1;

Fig. 3 is a perspective of a modification of the wall molding of Fig. 1; and

Fig. 4 is a sectional view at 44 of Fig. 3.

The wall molding 1 illustrated in Figs. 1 and 2 comprises an L-shaped bar formed of thin sheet steel having an upright side 2 and a horizontal side 3, preferably at right angles to the upright side. The edge of the horizontal side is folded back on itself to form a smooth edge 4. The upright side has a series of spaced holes 5 for attaching the molding to the wall 6 as with nails 7. The molding is preferably formed by stamping out a plurality of spaced-apart tabs 8. These tabs are integral with the molding at their tops and the free lower ends are movable outward (towards the wall) under pressure, and, because of the resiliency of the metal, can spring back inward.

In a preferred construction the tabs 8 are sloped, or curved as shown, to provide bearing surfaces 9 which facilitate installing the supported tiles. As shown in Figs. 1 and 2, the tile 10 resting on the horizontal side 3 has been pressed downward over the convex surfaces 9 which action compresses the tabs causing them to move outward under pressure which results in a constant force in the opposite direction as shown by the arrow which holds the tile 10 in close contact with the adjacent tile 11. This prevents shifting of the tile towards the wall resulting in an unsightly space between the adjacent tiles.

In the modification of wall molding illustrated in Figs. 3 and 4, the tabs 15 are provided with a series of small teeth 16 which are pressed out of the tab preferably in the same die that forms the tabs. These teeth point downwardly and inwardly and project into the tiles thereby preventing them from being moved upward under normal conditions.

The wall moldings are preferably made of steel of such composition that under the desired heat treatment the steel has a suflicient amount of springiness to exert a constant pressure against the tiles.

I claim:

A wall molding for supporting ceiling tiles in the form of an L-shaped metal bar comprising an upright side for attachment to a wall, a horizontal side which extends substantially at right angles from the upright side for sup porting ceiling tiles, and a plurality of tabs on the upright side and extending lengthwise along the upright side, said tabs being integral with the upright side and having bearing surfaces extending outwardly from the upright side and being yieldable under pressure whereby they can exert a constant horizontal force against the tiles supported on the horizontal side, said tabs having teeth pointing downward and in the direction of the tiles which become inserted into the tiles to hold them down.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 476,406 Pettit June 7, 1892 2,015,114 Kellogg Sept. 24, 1935 2,481,794 Stitt Sept. 13, 1949 2,537,930 Hall Jan. 9, 1951 2,565,636 Tinnerman Aug. 28, 1951 2,707,311 Orlin May 3, 1955 2,734,127 Naysmith Feb. 7, 1956 

